Happy 50th Birthday To One Of The World's Favorite Australian Mates - Steve Irwin!

Submitted by Mary on Wed, 02/22/2012 - 5:13pm (2000 reads)

Cheers to Steve Irwin, for following his passion! I never knew much about crocs or cared much about crocs until I saw Steve Irwin on TV. As a child I lived in Florida and the only thing I knew about crocs was that they looked like alligators to me, and I was scared of alligators, therefore, I was scared of crocs. It was that simple to me.

But, then one day as an adult I saw this Australian man on TV talking with an absolute passion about the beauty of crocs. It was his excitement, passion and love of the subject matter that drew me in. He could have been talking about nails and I would have been interested. But, only if he had the same passion for nails. It was that PASSION about crocs that reached out through the TV screen to every viewer at home. Somehow he made us see crocs through his eyes. We saw the beauty he saw in them, and we saw how incredibly powerful they are. Crocs are God's creatures too, and Steve Irwin recognized that long before many of us did. Steve Irwin could't help but share with the world the love he had for these creatures, and a variety of God's other creatures too, including snakes - another creature I was afraid of.

I'm not saying I'm over my fear of snakes or crocs. I'm not. But, I can say that I have an appreciation for them that I never had before I saw Steve Irwin on TV. Steve Irwin's passion for what he loved got through to all of us who watched him. His enthusiasm was as beautiful to me as the crocs were beautiful to him.

That is what is so great about people who fully follow their passions. Even if the passion is something that others are afraid of, such as crocs, if you follow your passion, you will eventually be able to help others learn about whatever it is that you're passionate about simply because the enthusiasm of doing what you love draws people in. That's what happened with Steve Irwin. He made wildlife wonderful, and we found ourselves wanting to know more.

Not everyone appreciated his energy and enthusiasm, but that's okay too. He was simply being himself, and not everyone's going to love that level of enthusiasm. But, I'm grateful he was just being himself because those of us who were entertained by him did get to learn from him. Seeing him smile when he talked about what he loved was a great example to all of us of the joy that can be had simply by following your passion in life.

Steve Irwin would have been 50 years old today. My heart still goes out to his wife and children, because I know they lost someone super special. But, there's no doubt that Steve Irwin's passion was so strong that it still lives on. Cheers to one of our best Australian mates! We love ya!

Thank you javaellybob for posting this touching tribue to Steve Irwin on YouTube!